A boy has a sandbox filled with about seven cubic yards of sand. With a toy tractor, he can easily shift all of the sand to one corner. After awhile, however, he does not have a sandbox anymore – he just has a hole in the ground. His sandbox has limits.

The leaders of the Arab Spring movement have found it easier to destroy a dictatorship than to build a democracy. That insight comes from Rashid Ghannushi, an intellectual leader in Tunisia, the north African country where the Arab Spring began a year ago.

MARIA KOZAKIEWICZ

Fourth Sunday in Lent
March 18, 2012

Every morning, even before I grab the first of many cups of coffee, my sleepy feet take me to the computer room for the world news. I check out the European, African and Asian news on the BBC and various Polish news agencies first.

FR. ROBERT BARRON

As I write this column, I am embarking on a trip to Australia with the Word on Fire team. We're heading halfway around the globe at the invitation of the Australian Catholic University, and my team will be with me to film the events. My intention is to produce a documentary on the new evangelization as it is actually practised.

JOE GUNN

On Feb.16, the federal government announced new legislation that will change Canada's refugee determination system – and according to Church people who work directly with refugees – not for the better.

SR. LOUISE ZDUNICH, NDC

I found your article on blessings informative and timely (WCR, Feb. 6). I am trying to educate myself on the correct way of doing things. I see the priest blessing the children before they go to the children's liturgy. I see no mention of this in the General Instruction on the Roman Missal (GIRM).

MARK PICKUP

In a recent column, I addressed the idea of Christian perinatal hospice (WCR, Feb. 27). It is a concept whereby parents facing a pregnancy involving a terminally ill unborn child are supported to carry their baby to term and prepare for their child's death.